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Trump will name more conservative judges. He may even pick a majority of the Supreme Court; Both sides react as Missouri reverses near-total abortion ban Literacy initiative to implement 250 new early-education activations in PA.

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President Biden asks Americans to turn down the temperature, House Speaker Mike Johnson promises an aggressive first 100 day agenda and Democratic governors vow to push back on Trump's plan for mass deportations.

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Texas women travel some of the longest distances for abortion care, Californians the shortest, rural living comes with mixed blessings for veterans, an ancient technique could curtail climate-change wildfires, and escape divisive politics on World Kindness Day.

WY lawmakers urge returning public school funding to constitutional minimum

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Monday, October 7, 2024   

A Wyoming committee has recommended a temporary bump in funding for public schools, while educators await a judge's decision on the state's broader duties to the system.

Wyoming's Joint Education Interim Committee voted to recommend an 8.5% increase in funding for public education during the next school year, an amount calculated to return funding to levels mandated by the state's constitution.

The increase comes through what is called an "external cost adjustment," which adjusts annually for inflation, which is meant to be on top of a "recalibration" every five years.

Kimberly Amen, president of the Wyoming Education Association, said the legislature has not incorporated results from the last three recalibrations.

"We, in this state, are operating on a funding model that dates clear back to 2010," Amen pointed out.

The Wyoming Education Association sued the state in 2022 for violating its constitution by not adequately funding public education. The judge is expected to make a decision on the case after he receives final materials later this month.

The cost adjustments are delivered via a block grant, so the proposed increase does not translate directly to a bump in teacher pay. Amen noted some school districts have had to use the block grants in creative ways to retain teachers, at the cost of other programming. Amen emphasized it particularly affects rural communities.

"Because we're such a rural state," Amen observed. "We have so many small communities where the school is the center of that community. "

Wyoming educators used to have a strong pay advantage over teachers in neighboring states but according to a report prepared for the committee, Wyoming's advantage has fallen by half since 2018.


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